Wooden Domino Laying Machine

Wooden domino row setup machine

[Matthias Wandel]  has come up with another awesome machine, this time a machine that sets up neat rows of dominos. If you’ve followed [Matthias]’s work over the years then you’ll know that this is a wooden version of one he made out of LEGO® back in 2009.

In true [Matthias] fashion he uses just the one motor both for moving the machine along and for pushing the dominos in place. Not satisfied with that efficient use of parts, the rubber band belts that transfer rotation from the motor shaft to the wheels (bearings) double as the rubber surfaces for those wheels. One of many joys from watching [Matthias] work is seeing how he forms wood into shapes that most people would have trouble sculpting from clay. In this case he does this when he needs parts for reaching over his domino magazine to hold a guide rail in place, and of course the parts are well-rounded and clean-looking.

You might also ask, where did he get all the wooden blocks for dominos? He made them of course, all 300 or so.

Be sure to check out the video below of both the build, and of it in action.

Interested in more of [Matthias]’s creativity? How about a wooden escalator for a slinky? Or perhaps a wooden binary adder?

17 thoughts on “Wooden Domino Laying Machine

    1. Even then, wood is difficult to get close tolerances on. These dominoes line up. Mostly.

      Neat little machine. Would making it out of metal mean that it could be made more precise?

      1. Nah! You’d be surprised the tolerances you can get with wood! Just use a hardwood…but moisture isn’t your friend!!! Maple is pretty stable if you can keep the temperature and humidity constant…

        1. Materials that require one to keep the temperature and humidity constant lest they lose precision or warp or mold or decay are not terribly suited for precision. There’s a reason that wood is rarely used for any metrology equipment. Sure, with precision tools you can get something remotely precise with a hardwood but it isn’t going to stay that way for long.

  1. OK, this is an amazing machine but it takes half the fun out of laying out thousands of dominos, laughing your ass off at the guy who has set up all but the last few and then accidentally knocks them over.

  2. Things I learned today, this guy is a genius, wooden floors can be incredibly shiny and I don’t need a lathe.

    for sale, 1942 leblond lathe and a raglan 5inch capstone lathe

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